Dogs And Dwarfs – Dogs in Historical Art

text and illustrations by Ria Hörter

WHAT DO WE SEE?

Paintings of dogs portrayed with a dwarf became popular in the 16th and 17th centuries. Dwarfs were common at nearly every Euro- pean court; the Spanish royal court had more than 100 dwarfs. They were objectified status symbols – court jesters, and kept to provide entertainment. They were given as gifts to fel- low kings and queens; some were sold among royal families. Sometimes a royal bride would receive a dwarf as a wedding gift. Neverthe- less, dwarfs had a good position at the royal courts. They danced at parties, made jokes, made music and were mimics, sometimes of their royal owners. On the one hand they got a lot of attention, but on the other, they were sometimes treated very badly. In general, they were considered slip-ups of nature.

LIKE MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY

The dwarfs’ owners showed them off and dressed them in expensive clothing; artists were commissioned to paint their portraits. Sovereigns and their children were portrayed with a dwarf, but the most interesting paint- ings show a dog and a dwarf. Some dogs were painted with a dwarf to emphasize both their sizes. Some paintings are mildly humorous, but overall they feel awkward. I did not find any paintings with dogs and dwarfs at north- ern European courts; most such paintings were made in Spain, Italy and France. When morality changed in the 18th and 19th cen- turies and people were no longer considered somebody’s property, dwarfs ceased to be seen as part of court life.

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Posted by Alex on Apr 24 2017. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.